1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an improved Fischer-Tropsch process for the production of olefinic C.sub.2 -C.sub.4 hydrocarbons.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The art contains many examples of metals known to be useful in reacting carbon monoxide with hydrogen to produce a variety of compounds--both hydrocarbons and oxygenated compounds. These metals include, among others, Mo, W, Th, Ru, Re, Pd, Ni, Co, and Fe. It is upon the last two of these metals that most commercial experience is based. In what has come to be called the Fischer-Tropsch Synthesis, carbon monoxide and hydrogen are reacted over an iron or cobalt catalyst to produce saturated and unsaturated hydrocarbons and oxygenated compounds containing from one to as many as one thousand carbon atoms. The hydrocarbons can be aliphatic, alicyclic, or aromatic. Commercial utilization of this synthesis prior to 1950 was accomplished largely in Germany and is summarized in Storch, Columbic, and Anderson: The Fisher-Tropsch and Related Synthesis, John Wiley and Sons, New York 1951.
The major disadvantages in the prior art processes and catalysts is that most of them are not capable of selectively producing olefins. A process capable of producing olefins of low molecular weight could be used as a source of feedstock for a variety of petrochemical plants.